We just got back from our second trip out to Frontsight, Nevada for 4 day defensive handgun training.  If you’re not a gun person, I totally understand.  I was pretty opposed to guns before my first trip, but took my first course at the insistence of my Dad and my husband. I was shocked that I  enjoyed learning to shoot and even more that I wanted to go back! Imagine a world where most citizens were trained with firearms and conceal carried.  What a huge deterrent to criminals that would be!

 

What it is:  4 days of intensive training that is as friendly as possible while still being safe.  It is not a boot camp.  Almost anyone can come, even children aged 11-15 can go with a parent. It’s okay if you’ve never fired a weapon before Frontsight.  It’s better to not have any habits, than to have bad habits to overcome.  But if you have shot before they will show you how to take your existing skills and get even better. The classes are more than just how to shoot, but also when to shoot, how to stay within the law and what the likely consequences are even if your shots were completely justified.  There is a background check required for all students.  And because everyone is armed, it is one of the safest places on earth. No one would dream of committing a crime there unless they were suicidal.

One of my favorite students was Lori.  She is 77 years young and not even 5 feet tall!  She carries 4 magazines on her left side and with 15 rounds each.  This was her second year at Frontsight.  4 years ago she decided to take martial arts classes and achieved her black belt in the second degree at age 75.  She was throwing large men on the mat and doing it well.  But threw out her back in the process.  She decided to take up shooting instead. I asked her what her son and grandchildren thought about grandma shooting.  She said they didn’t know about it!  She also said she really didn’t need either martial arts or guns, because she had Jesus.  I just adore her.  Isn’t she the cutest thing?

On the line next to us, a twelve year old boy was taking classes with his dad.  The boy was likely the best shot on the property that day (at least among the students.)  It was impressive to watch him!  The instructor told his dad if they were ever in need of tactically clearing a house to send the boy in first.  He was that good.  But I think that would be a hard decision for any parent to make.

The climate is unique in Nevada.  Hot and Dry during the day, cold at night.  Dehydration is a real risk as is sunburn, heat exhaustion, or heat stroke.  We found it is cooler to wear long lightweight layers than to have skin exposed to the sun.  Here’s the outfit I recommend:

 

A Woman’s Guide to What to wear at Frontsight Nevada

511 tactical gear pants in light khaki (the pockets in these are invaluable) (Try LApolicegear.com for the best price–around $29.00) Be sure to get the new fit or you will end up with mom pants–yuck. Also tuck the pocket flaps into the pockets on the left side of your pants while you are on the range.  The rough velcro is rough enough to cut your hands as you reach in and out multiple times.  Tucking in the pockets will protect you.  Mine are way too long.  They come in regular and long lengths.  Regular is about 30 inches.  Long are about 34 inches.  I’ll hem mine later but for the class I just flipped up the cuffs.  (Then I took home pieces of ammo casing and gravel every night.  If you are flying right away at the end of the class be sure to check your cuffs :).

tank top

white Long sleeved button front cotton shirt to wear over the tank and use for concealment on days 3 and 4

low cut socks and breathable mesh tennis shoes (you’ll want to wash the shoes in the washer once you are back home)

Hat with brim (not optional); and wrap around protective eyewear with a dark tint (also not optional)

A wide belt with a slide fastener instead of buckle and holes.  This will help a lot when it’s time to use the restroom.  (see below :).)

A loose weave neck scarf is nice too.  I’ve never had one, but my husband and dad love theirs.  They are popular on the grounds.

Wear sunscreen under the long sleeved shirt.  You will need to take it off at times, especially the first two days when conceal carry clothing isn’t used yet.

Also, be careful your tank isn’t cut too low.  I caught a hot casing down the front of my shirt on the last day and it really had me dancing. Those things can burn you, so it’s best to protect for that.

My Ammo Box. Looks too messy to me, but I move so fast normally that I don’t take time to stay organized. My SIL snapped this picture because my sparkly lip gloss tickled her funny bone. I was the queen of sparkly lip gloss on the range. Just in case, I felt like I was losing my girly edge during a fast draw. And we were in the desert–can’t have too much sparkly lip gloss in the desert.

What to Pack in Your Ammo Can

An ammo can is a plastic box with lid and latches for holding ammo, some people use a range duffle or tackle box instead.  You will need 600 rounds of ammo for a 4 day course, but only keep 200 rounds at a time in your can.  This will keep the can from getting too heavy and save room for the other essentials:

1.  A fingernail file.  Bring something heavy duty–your nails will break.  In preparation for the class, trim them just slightly longer than your fingertips and file them with flat ends.  Then reinforce your nails with 3 coats of clear polish or hardening top coat.  Still bring the file.  Guns are hard on fingernails.

2. Pocket tissues:  the range is dusty

3.  Beef jerky, nuts, and fruit or other snacks (that won’t melt.) Lunch is late 12:30 and if you have a time zone issue (we were delayed 2 hours) it can be really hard to make it to lunch or dinner.

4. Lip balm and lip gloss.  If you have one with sunscreen in it, all the better.  My lips got burned this time, ouch!

5. Sunscreen.  The higher the SPF the better.  And reapply often.

6.  Electronic hearing protection–this is required.  Just ear foamies won’t do.

7.  Ponytail holders (if your hair is long enough)  I like to wear a ponytail and pull it through the back of my hat.

8. Waterproof bandaids.  Frontsight has first aid kits there with a plethora of bandaids but I had a hard time getting any of them to stick after I started sweating.  I wished I had brought the sport ones that stick through anything.

9.  Frozen gatorade.  I don’t generally drink gatorade but make an exception in this case.  It can be hard to see the signs of dehydration or heat exhaustion in yourself, but others will see it–especially if you start doing stupid stuff or missing easy targets. It’s dangerous, so stay hydrated. They have deli trucks that come around with gatorade for $2 a bottle, but you can get it for 1/4th the cost if you plan ahead and bring your own.  Pop it in the freezer the night before.  Then as it thaws you can give it a good shake and it’s like a slushie.  Yum!

10.  Your photo ID.  You will need this to check in on the first day, and if any of your equipment breaks you will need to leave it as a deposit when you rent equipment to replace it from Frontsight.

11.  Caribiners.  The best price on these are from Wal-mart.  A huge one for $3 is handy to hang your electronic ear muffs from when you are doing dry practice.  And the small ones are good for clipping things like your loader to your belt loop.  I wish I had taped a small one to each of the front courners of my conceal carry shirt too.  The wind was making it hard to clear and draw for the exam and I know I lost points from wind delays that the weight of the beaners would have fixed.

 

Travel and Where to Stay

If you live close enough to Pahrump, NV to drive, I’m jealous.  If you need to fly, watch airline prices carefully. They will dip between $100 and $140 one way; book your flight on the low end.  We found the best prices on Southwest. Sunday is the most expensive day to fly and Wednesday is generally the cheapest.  We like to fly out Wednesday night for our classes that start Friday morning.  This gives us a day to rest, grocery shop, and get used to the time change before the crazy schedule begins.

Plan extra time when flying with guns.  You can check them in your bags but will have to fill out a declaration card at the counter.  Also you’ll need to pack ammo in a separate container from your gun (still inside the same suitcase though) and it must be in original packaging, not floating around loose.  You will be limited to 11 lbs of ammo.  Our friend’s ammo was weighed at the counter, ours was not–so you never know when they are going to check.  Your gun case will need to be securely locked for flying and a TSA lock for the outside of your suitcase is a good idea too.  Once everything is cleared at the counter you will be asked to wait 10-15 minutes for your bag to clear the 2nd level of security before finding your gate.

When flying home, book your flight for the day after your class ends.  You will be too exhausted to travel and if your flight is too early, you will miss the closing class activities (and the test.)  You definitely don’t want to miss those things. When you do fly home, check your pockets carefully for stray ammo.  During the class you’ll be shoving loose rounds into every available pocket so you can load on the line. TSA doesn’t find it funny if you forget and leave a round in your pocket.

Also, TSA doesn’t allow coconut oil, peanut butter, mayo or other spreadable items in your carry on bag.  I lost a big jar of coconut oil that way.  I thought it was just liquids that were restricted, but it’s not.  You can find the most recent TSA rules on their website: http://www.tsa.gov/traveler-information/prohibited-items 

If you are going alone or with just one other person, the cheapest hotel is SaddleWest in Pahrump.  It doesn’t have a great reputation, but we liked it okay.  Our room smelled of smoke, which I didn’t like, but we weren’t there much.  Most rooms do not have a fridge, so plan to buy a styrofoam cooler when you arrive to fill with ice and lunch fixing stuff.  Boxed lunches from the hotel are $10 each! but are $12 at Frontsight!  You’ll definitely be ahead to pack your own lunch.

If you are going with a group of 6, the cheapest option is to rent a vacation home.  We did that this time and loved it.  Plus the full kitchen made it super easy to make simple breakfasts and pack lunches.  I don’t recommend trying to cook supper even if you have a full kitchen.  You will be exhausted and most often won’t leave Frontsight until 6pm–with a half hour drive back to civilization and then starting meal prep–you’ll be hungry and frustrated before dinner is ready.  If you are set on saving money by cooking, it is easier to cook the 3rd and 4th nights.  We used a slow cooker for one night and grilled burgers the next.  It worked out ok. Vacationrentals.com is a good place to look for accommodations.

There is a Walmart in Pahrump with a full grocery store and an Albertsons too.  I took a few specialty items from home, like Trim Healthy Mama chocolate waffle mix, chia seeds, ground flax, and glucomannan powder.  But we bought most things when we arrived.

How to Use Facilities When Armed

Guns are expensive, and the last thing you want to do is drop one in a toilet.  While most have safeties that prevent them from firing when dropped (and you won’t be allowed to be loaded in the John) it’s still a bad idea to drop your gun.  If you have a belt holster and loosen the belt and drop your pants, the weight of the gun will pull your belt out and drop everything on the floor. (Ask me how I know!)  To prevent this, use a slide buckle and loosen the belt almost to the end to give you plenty of room to move your pants up and down. Then lock the slide so the belt can’t come off.

Also, when using the porta-potties at the back ranges, don’t lift the lid to the toilet until your pants are down past where your gun could fall in, and close it immediately before lifting your pants back up again.  This is TMI only if you don’t need the info!

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I’m not sure how to transition from that last topic, lol.  So I’m just going to move on :).  My goal is to pass the Defensive Handgun Course with 90% or better.  And even after 2 times through, I couldn’t even graduate.  It’s the speed pressure that gets me every time.  The key to graduating is dry practicing at home.  The hardest part for me is just getting out of the holster in time to take my shots. I’m going to take a year to practice and save my pennies so next time I can take my 2 oldest kids with me.  Once I graduate at 90% I can take the advanced course and then the tactical course.  I really want to do that!

So do any of you shoot?  I’m always pleasantly surprised to find out how many women do and don’t talk about it much.